Tweedledum and Tweedledee

Tweedledum and Tweedledee

All of the toasts to the incredible puzzle boxes from the Lewis Carroll Puzzle Project have been inspired by the original Jabberwock cocktail found in Harry Craddock’s Savoy Cocktail Book, 1930. Yet none, up to now, have actually featured the original, which is comprised of equal parts gin, dry sherry, the South African vermouth Caperitif (which has only recently become available again), and a few dashes of orange bitters. Craddock, a celebrity bartender of the day, wrote that the cocktail would make you “gyre and gimble in the wabe, alright alright”.

ran-Dum ingre-Dee-ents?

The Tweedledum and Tweedledee cocktail is really two separate cocktails in one. The first is a proper Jabberwock, as described. Its twin is complimentary, using sloe gin, sweet sherry, and Cynar, with berry bitters. Sloe gin has been infused with sloe berries, a relative to the plum which is indigenous to the Northern Hemisphere, and the UK in particular, where homemade bottlings are a common autumn tradition. Oloroso sherry is a sweeter style produced by fortifying the wine early in the process and removing the layer of yeast known as the flor. This allows the wine to oxidate, imparting darker colors and sweeter flavors over time. Finally Cynar is an Italian amaro notable for its use of artichoke leaves, which do not actually impart that flavor to the final digestivo, which is rich and vegetal, but rather aids in digestion and imparts sweetness. The surprising combination of flavors in this twin cocktail make for a wonderful variation all on its own – but, these two are inseparable, after all. Cheers!

A pair of twins

Tweedledum and Tweedledee

½ oz gin

½ oz sloe gin

½ oz Manzanilla

½ oz Oloroso

½ oz Caperitif

½ oz Cynar

1 dash orange bitters

1 dash Black Cloud Black and Blue bitters

Stir ingredients with ice and strain into a favorite glass. Garnish with a lemon peel “Dum” and “Dee” collar on the glass.

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